I’ve confessed my addiction to dishes HERE and HERE. I’ve completed the course for conquering my addiction and feel certain I’m cured [CODE = no more room anywhere for anymore dishes], but existing collections require storage, storage is sometimes an open display space which requires some creative arranging. Phew!
So, I thought I’d show you some inspiring images of pretty cupboards I’ve found around blog land, just in case you struggle with the same affliction.
I have cupboards that will accommodate more of my dishes behind cupboard doors than I have shelves that require creative display but I am always watching for ideas I can steal borrow.
I used to visit a French restaurant, Pascal’s, that would have their dinner plates stacked in an antique hutch in the dining room. I loved the feel that I was dining in someone’s country farmhouse.
I just noticed that most of the hutch images I’ve collected have white dishes.
Savvy Southern Style
Martha Stewart
and my favorite…
Yeager Antique Cabinet
Do you keep dishes and glassware somewhere besides the kitchen cupboard?
Garden, Home & Party 
Jenny Mein said:
I love all of these photos…… and I also think the older and rustic the cupboards/French Dresser, call it what you will, the better the china display looks!
Karen B. said:
Jenny,
I agree, you can put a simple arrangement of dishes in a fabulous cupboard and its fabulous. The older the cupboard the better the arrangement looks. I could see some of your designs in one of these cupboards. 🙂
Karen
Victoria Elizabeth Barnes said:
I collect antique and vintage dishes too. Nothing coherent, just a mishmash of things I like. It’s kind of a silly collection since they take up so much room… I just got some small soup bowls that have a handle on both sides—very cute. But I have no idea where I’m going to put them (and thus have no idea why I bought them!).
I really love the all-white look, but I don’t think I have a single all-white dish. Do you collect something specific?
Karen B. said:
Victoria,
Consistent with my lack of focus I have collected a “mishmash” of blue and white transferware, black and white transferware and red and white transferware, along with a few ironstone pieces. I’ve collected 5 sets of dinner plates, 3 of the sets (I stick to dinner plates) by Villeroy and Boch patterns. I have Spode Christmas Tree and some turkey plates. I can’t reveal anymore than this for fear I’ll loose readership (she’s certifiably crazy) 🙂 I don’t know why I gravitate towards the cupboards with white dishes since I only have one set of white dinner plates other than the uniformity. Do you change out dishes with seasons? (Yikes, I really sound obsessed!)
Karen
Victoria Elizabeth Barnes said:
No need for me to change out dishes… since I DON’T USE THEM. Like everything else I love, I do not want anyone to touch them. In my defense, I don’t tend to collect dinner plates, and a lot of what I pick up is so small and delicate that most people wouldn’t find it practical for everyday use.
I do use my Jadeite mixing bowls. But only the swirl pattern… because? I don’t like them as well, and only bought them because they were super cheap at an estate sale. That is kind of funny—I looked at them and thought, oh I don’t like the swirl pattern… I’ll buy them since I’ll actually use them!
Karen B. said:
You are hilarious…I thought you were going to say you don’t use your dishes because you don’t cook. I have friends that have the most amazing, remodeled kitchens and they mostly do take out. 🙂 I like delicate china cups and when I see them in a setting, styled by a photographer, I think I’d really enjoy tea and coffee from a delicate cup and saucer…then I grab the mugs in the cupboard and drink. I also have some very delicate china bowls from my dad’s side of the family, raising 2 sons I quickly realized the only time I could use them is if I hosted a girly luncheon, which I did sometimes, but then I’d think they were too delicate to use.
Karen
Linda Coble said:
Karen,
Wonderful post! Most of my things are stored behind cupboard doors but I have some glasses on display in the wet bar area. I’ve always loved the Irish hutch in the dining room but I have to admit that I’m getting tired of the Petit Fleur dishes that I have displayed there. Being a firm believer that you can never have too many sets of dishes, I’m thinking about giving the Petit Fleur a rest and replacing them with a different set. What do you think?
I loved some of the antique cabinets in your post. You could display cans of cat food in them and it would look fantastic.
Gretchen said:
Karen, you, Linda and I have always had “dish-itis” as Stu calls it. Over the years we’ve all filled every available space with our collections. Before I acquired the large display case in the dining room, I had sets of dishes in the laundry room and garage! Now at least everything is accessible. Maybe there’s a support group for people with this addiction…..
kellygray620418449 said:
Oh girl..know that you are not alone in your addiction! I love that cabinet in the photo by your write up of the French restaurant – beautiful. My best “dish display” cabinet is now in the bathroom – so no dish display in there. I display very few because we have a million books! I have tons of milkglass behind cabinet doors, French quimper(sp.), Christmas china, and a beautiful set of ivory dishes. My mom is just as bad and wants to give me dishes so SHE will have more room.
Karen B. said:
Hi Kelly,
Your comment arrived. It seems WordPress needed me to approve it, which doesn’t make any sense. Anyway, now that I have approved you 🙂 maybe it won’t be an issue.
I’m happy to know we share this dish addiction…That’s so much fun that your mom loves to collect as well! Lol, she wants to give you some of her collection so she can make room for more. It sounds like we have similar sets. A friend of mine found this amazing cupboard that has room for several sets…it’s really pretty. For now I’ve put the breaks on any more dishes. I’ve discovered I simply don’t have any more room!
Karen